places to fish?

Is there any places to fish from Cowden to around Vandlia on the Kaskaskia river, because im trying to find a place to catch some channel cats but i cant find a place to fish.Any info would be great!! Thanks.

Welcome Jordan, welcome to the BOC. Not many places that are "public access" but ya find out the owners and IF you spend the time to ask you should get permission from most along there..... Where abouts ya live, if I may ask? I pretty much fish some of the area by boat when water is up....
Randy

Hey, thanks Randy for the info. I live in Altamont so i dont live to far from you. Went fishing to day after all the rain at the altamont rev. and caught me 14 channel cat!!! Do you catch pretty good size channel and flatheads out of the kaskasai river. talk to you later. Jordan M.

Yep, every now and again manage to sneak up on a nice flat head :wink: The back road from say Brownstown to Ramsey (?) you know where ya cross the river there?, back to the north east there is that ox-bow (old part of river) where they straightened the river for the bridge, any way if you park there and walk between the river and the old channel you will get to the spot where the river meets it, (looks like a low-head dam) there is a very nice hole right there in the river (may have to clean you some weeds and brush out for a spot) and then if you can find a few places around the pond (ox-bow) every time the river floods that out it just replenishes the fish in it, I will tell ya it usually has some very nice big crappie that get trapped in it each time the water goes down, give that a try if you never have. Also on the south side there of the bridge there is another nice long hole, not the deepest but always has some good cat in it.

Thanks alot randy really appericate the info. Do you still have to have permmsion if your fishing by the brigde or is that state owned. Do you like to use minnows and shad for those flatsheads and channel or do profrer something else. thanks jordan.

Hmmm, It must have been a year or two since ya fished that area Shawn? :wink: But your correct, used to be a few "Bank winch" set ups along the river as that was the only way you could put a boat in..... Now if the state would have bought a few acres some where in the area and built a ramp like they did south of van that would have been great..... there is a spot or two still that we will push a jon down the bank and then pull it out with the winch on the truck or atv, other then that your banken it, but still great fishing from the bank, and if you go when the water is low (like usual) you can atv or walk the sand bars and fish all the good holes :wink:

It was a long time ago (20 years), but we parked there and carried a small jon boat to the water just on the downstream side of the bridge.

I mostly fished between Shelbyville and Cowden, but the only ramps were below the dam, and Horseshoe campground (if that's still around). You may be able to carry a small boat to the water by Copeland-Ford bridge. That's a mile or two south of Shelbyville. I spent time a little further downstream than that.

The Kaskaskia river below Shelbyville is one bend after another; lots of cut banks, and lots of wood in the water. Fairly isolated. Main problem with trying to fish from a boat is all the shallow riffles and sandbars during midsummer when the gates are locked down at Shelbyville. If you have a small boat/motor and don't mind getting out to drag the boat through some shallows it can be done.

There used to be a lot of local guys fishing throw lines (short trotline with window weight on the end) and bank poles. When the water runs low all summer and there's a good rain, the bite was usually terrific.